Hi,

I have been doing Atkins since the middle of march of this year. My weight loss started on Jan 1st with first eliminating sugar, caffeine, refined carbs and dairy. Later I eliminated wheat. I had been eating protein at every meal for a few years now as previous I had done 'potatoes not prozac.' My energy was good and up to the middle of March I had lost 4kg. My starting weight was 65kg and I am 162 cm high.

I started Atkins at 61kg. I did induction for just over 3 weeks and lost another 4kg. I would have gone longer on induction but my energy levels were at an all time low - I was mentally and physically exhausted.

I posted for the first time on 'general health' and got some great advice. I upped my vitamins and now included mag/cal and potassium. I also take zinc, lysine, acidophilus and a multi/vit and min and also extra C.

My energy has definitely improved but not to what it was before I started Atkins.

The last two weeks I have added dairy (cheese and cream) and nuts to increase my fats intake. I am not sure that this was a good move as my hunger has come back. I also find these food rather addictive and want more and more.

As well as not having radiant physcial and mental energy and a returning focus on eating more, my weight has stabilised and I have not lost anything for weeks now.

A friend who does Atkins checked my food and it showed up fine - I also have snacks between meals to prevent low blood sugar.

I exercise 6 time a week usually (this week I have only had the energy to do the weights 3x). This consists of 30 mins fast walking on the treadmill 3 days and on the alternate days weights just using a barbell and abs for about 30 mins. I have worked up very slowly to this so I am not overexercising. I would have gone higher long before this but this WOE has really slowed me down.

I had a huge range of blood tests in Nov of last year - everything fine. Last week the Doc repeated some of the tests (incl. thyroid) and did a very thorough physical. Everything was normal and healthy. My heart showed as being very fit for my age (45). My blood pressure is low but that has always been the case.

Does anyone have any suggestions

Maybe I am someone who does need more carbs. Even on induction I found I was better with more salad veges than recommended.

Trisha

Hi Trisha!

I would need to know what your average daily menu looks like, but with all that working out it sounds as if you are not getting enough calories! It is very easy to under-eat with this way of life, even with snacks. Do you use Fitday.com to track your meals? It is a great tool.


-Shelly

Trisha, you've done amazingly well so far

Checking your profile I see that you're 162 cm, roughly 5'4, right? Have you given any thought that perhaps you are at a healthy weight for your frame? I realize everyone is different and at 125 lbs you may still have some fat to lose - but perhaps losing weight isnt what is required, maybe gaining some muscle mass would do the trick? If you replace 5 lbs of fat with 5 lbs of lean muscle you'll weigh the same, but you'll take up a lot less space.

As you are very close to goal, the loss will be slower, regardless of how you go about changing your body composition - those last 10 lbs can take forever - or so it seems.

As for the tiredness, we would need to know more - what are you eating, exactly? How much are you drinking (water)? It is quite possible that being very active you are not eating enough a) calories or b) carbs. Feeling tired, or 'bonking out' is a common occurrance if you are eating too few carbs for your activity level. Using www.fitday.com to track your food and activities is a good start - maintaining a Journal here is another great idea. With more information we would be better able to offer advice.

Nat

Hi Shelly and Nat,

Thanks for your replies. I will check out fitday.

I vary my meals each day but a typical one is

Breakfast - 2 soft boiled eggs and a sometimes about 10 almonds.

Mid morning - 1 and a half desertspoons of psyllium husks (I used to be real regular prior to this WOE. Sometimes some more almonds or cashews.

Lunch - 2-3 cups of salad veges (lettuce or cabbage, tomatoes, celery and cucumber). A can of sardines or half a big can of tuna. Sometimes some sunflower seeds (small handful). A good splosh of extra virgin olive oil or a couple of tablespoons of tAHINI if I just have nuts and seeds with it.

Mid Afternoon - repeat of psyllium husks.

Dinner - chicken, fish or meat with steamed veges (1 and a half to
2cups of a mixture of brocoli, zuchinni, pumpkin or beans). Sometimes I substitute the veges with salad and splosh more oil on or golden norganic soya mayonaise (2 - 3 desert spoons).

I take my vits as previously mentioned I also drink heaps of liquorice herb tea in particular or dandelion coffee with cream. If I am out I have decaf coffee with cream. (asking for coffee with cream seems to be a new thing in Australia!). I could easily drink say 8 - 12 beverages per day.

My water intake has dropped off since the first few weeks of induction (I decided I must be having plenty in the healthy beverages I have. Note if I have decaf I make sure I drink a glass of water with it ). I probably manage 2-4 large glasses of water now compared to over twice that before. I do know I need to work on that. I have no excuse really because we have lots of nice sweet rainwater.

Nat I am 5 foot 3 and a bit in height and I have a small bone structure - light frame. Pre children and for a while after them (first time I lost a heap of weight doing gym and lowfat) I was 54kg but even at that weight and with good muscle tone (I was doing quite heavy weights then) I still had a pot belly even though my my body fat was supposedly around 23%. Because of that I have though I should even go lower even down to 50kg.

I have been reading a heap on Syndrome X jst lately but I am pretty much doing that diet with Atkins.

Trisha

Hi Trisha,
As an Atkins follower I noticed a few things that may help you.

The first things is as you mentioned, the water. If you are in a dry climate you need more water. When I lived in a desert area of BC I doubled my intake. The water bottle never left my side, and I would sip on it throughtout the day. With the exercise you are doing, you should probably do likewise.

The other things is EFA's. I noticed that they can be a great plateau buster. That thing about your body releasing uneeded fat when it is supplied with EFA's seems to be true. Actually the menu you posted seems a bit LOW in fat for the Atkins plan. It looks as if you are trying to mix The Zone and Atkins. Try the "French Toast" recipe that is posted here if a buttery omelet doesn't appeal to you. Pour on the olive oil over tuna etc. But better yet, get used to whacking down a tablespoon or two of EFA's (it took me some time to master this). Check out the site on other relevant info on dosage.

And lastly Dr. Atkins does recommend that people who are feeling weak and tired (after the initial strict induction period) increase their carb intake. He suggests that a practical way of testing yourself is to monitor how you feel after climbing stairs.

I agree with Nat that the last 10 lbs can be frustrating. The body seems to need time to get itself together. Dr. Atkins even suggests that a goal of a pound a month in the end is a good goal. It builds a good base for lifetime maintenance (remember this is for life).

Hope this helps

Colin

Hi Colin ,

Thanks for your reply for some reason it was not sent to me even though I had revisited the site

I tried giving the nuts and dairy a miss. I went back to induction and I also drank more water as you have recommended. I also forced myself to poor olive oil over everything (hard when I have had the low fat indoctrination for years )

I have since doing this lost a few more kilos (sorry being an Aussie it is hard getting my head around the idea of pounds :exclm. I am almost at my initial goal weight but as I still have quite a bit of flab around my middle (fine everywhere else) I do need to go lower.

I'll take note on your discussion re:EFA. I tried the fish oil capsules (reflux free) but I did have bad flatulence with them - this may not occur now I am low carb.

Thanks again for your input.

Trisha

Hi Trisha,
Since you are close you your goal weight you will have to be patient for the body to readjust. Think about all the infrastructure your body had to manufacture to support you additional weight. Now it has to determine whether you still might need it, or whether it should start dismantling it all.

This is one reason ( I believe) that Dr. Atkins has divided his plan into four stages. It is also why I'm not too worried about plateaus. You may think you body is doing nothing, but in fact it is putting together a bunch of commitee meetings regarding future support of the areas of obesity and beginning test projects to remove support structures from the areas under discussion. (I should work for the gov't!)

That is why the worst thing you can do during a plateau is get frustrated and cheat. It is like having a bunch of protesters storm the meeting and demand continued service!

The flab will eventually go. I have the pics to prove it. Have patience and faith......yeah yeah I know. Keep up the hydration and vitamin support. Try staggering the EFA's throughout the day. I don't get "Fish Burps" when I do that. Learn to listen to the humm of your body. This is the ultimate goal of the program and perhaps the most difficult part, though it sounds like you have the right personality to achieve this.

Best of Luck

Colin

P.S. We are supposed to be in metric as well, however it came in after I went to school and pounds and inches are the way the mind still works. I'm totally confused on miles and kilometers, so have simply reverted to measuring distances by time. It makes more sense when driving through the mountains.

Forgot to add. Watch out for the licorice tea. Do some research on the internet. The glycerinic acid (sp?) can affect your aldosterone production and cause water retention. Good thing? Bad thing? You decide.

Colin

Hi Trisha!
you have done awesome! dont let that number on the scale take away your JOY!!!!!!

i read somewhere on these wonderful boards (can anyone remember where that was? ) that it may take up to 6 weeks after you reach your goal for your body to redistribute what body fat you still have! just be patient! and keep doing what you are doing.

eat more fat and drink more water! ]
you go girl!

Trisha,

I agree totall with Kim:

"eat more fat and drinnk more water"

They are both needed for energy, lack of water can definitely lead to fatigue.

Keep up the good work.

Hi All,

Thank you all so much for your advice and encouragement.

I am certainly drinking more water (hard now as it is getting real cold here) and eating more fat.

Colin, I am thinking too that having plateaus is good for the body especially if a lot of weight is lost in a short period of time. The poor old bod just does need that time to adjust. I really should start thinking about upping my carbs slowly. I do over induction level but I haven't been measuring (I seem to have a block over doing that !)

I have done a search on the internet for liquorice tea but need to do more. It is not good for people who have high blood pressure (I have low). It does give increased energy and has positive benefits for both the digestive tract and bronchial tubes.

The tea I drink comes from NZ and also contains aniseed, fennel and peppermint tea.

Colin your results are impressive - well done for getting so close to goal! You must be feeling pretty good.

Trisha